Commentary on the Diamond Sutra: The Nirmāṇakāya Is Not True, Thirty-Two

Original text: 须菩提。若有人以满无量阿僧祗世界七宝。持用布施。若有善男子善女人。发菩提心者。持于此经。乃至四句偈等。受持读诵。为人演说。其福胜彼。

Explanation: Subhūti, if someone fills immeasurable, countless (asaṃkhyeya) worlds with the seven treasures and uses them all for giving (dāna), the merit thus obtained is extremely vast. But if a good man or good woman has brought forth the bodhi mind of the Great Vehicle, upholds this sūtra, or even a four-line verse of it, not only receiving, upholding, reading, and reciting it himself, but also expounding it for sentient beings, then the merit obtained by this good man or good woman will far surpass that of the person who gives away the seven treasures filling immeasurable asaṃkhyeya worlds.

Asaṃkhyeya is an Indian word meaning an extremely large, uncountable number. Asaṃkhyeya worlds means countless, uncountable trichiliocosms. If someone gives away the seven treasures of a single small world, the merit would already be inconceivable; how much more so for giving away the seven treasures of an entire trichiliocosm—the merit is even more inconceivable. Then what of giving away the seven treasures of countless trichiliocosms? Could such merit possibly be imagined or conceived? It is simply beyond conception. Yet there is another good man or good woman who has brought forth the great bodhi mind, wishing to perfect the Buddha Way and vastly benefit boundless sentient beings. Such a good man or good woman receives, upholds, and recites the Diamond Sutra, studies and cultivates the Dharma of realizing buddhahood through the tathāgatagarbha; he is able to fully receive, uphold, and realize the tathāgatagarbha of this sūtra, and can also expound and reveal it to other sentient beings with whom he has affinities. The merit he obtains is far more excellent than that of the person who gives away the seven treasures of immeasurable asaṃkhyeya worlds.

Why is this said? Because good men and good women who can truly receive, uphold, and recite the Diamond Sutra are already great bodhisattvas who have realized the true reality of prajñā; they are people of genuine merit and wisdom. Not only do they themselves possess vast merit and wisdom, they also teach other sentient beings to obtain the great merit and great wisdom of receiving, upholding, and reciting the Diamond Sutra, and thus their own merit and wisdom further increase. When their wisdom and merit grow to the utmost and reach perfection, they become the Honored One Perfect in Both Merit and Wisdom, the Teacher of Gods and Humans, the Buddha, the World-Honored One.

Since this is so, what then is the merit obtained from giving the seven treasures of asaṃkhyeya worlds worth? These worlds and seven treasures are all conditioned, marked dharmas subject to arising and ceasing; they are all things within the mind of the vajra mind (Vajracitta), merely a small part of the maṇi jewel of self-nature. The good man and good woman who receive, uphold, and recite the Diamond Sutra have realized this maṇi jewel and thus possess it; it is as if they possessed the seven treasures of asaṃkhyeya worlds, and at the same time possessed the immeasurable asaṃkhyeya worlds of the future. Such merit, of course, far surpasses that of the person who gives away the seven treasures of asaṃkhyeya worlds.

Original text: 云何为人演说。不取于相。如如不动。

Explanation: How should the good men and good women who expound the Diamond Sutra and its four-line verses, who reveal the wondrous Dharma of the tathāgatagarbha, expound it for others? They should be free of the four marks, expounding the Dharma without mentally grasping at any dharma-mark. Moreover, toward all dharma-marks they should remain suchness-immovable, not seeing dharmas as truly existent; the mind should not turn and move along with external states and dharma-marks. Like the tathāgatagarbha, pure and undefiled, they should not grasp at marks, nor give rise to mental thoughts—no mind toward objects, suchness-immovable.

After bodhisattvas realize the tathāgatagarbha, they will increasingly observe the pure, unconditioned nature of the tathāgatagarbha, and at the same time increasingly perceive the illusory, impermanent nature of all conditioned dharmas. Their minds will gradually no longer take delight in conditioned dharmas, and will incline toward the pure, unconditioned nature of the tathāgatagarbha. Bodhisattvas gradually observe that all the conditioned dharma-marks of the threefold world are produced and conjured forth by the tathāgatagarbha, and so they gradually cease to grasp at any dharma-marks of the world; toward all dharmas, the mind gradually ceases to turn and move along with them, and finally they can attain suchness-immovability, resembling the unconditioned nature of the tathāgatagarbha.

Original text: 何以故。一切有为法。如梦幻泡影。如露亦如电。应作如是观。佛说是经已。长老须菩提。及诸比丘。比丘尼。优婆塞。优婆夷。一切世间天人阿修罗。闻佛所说。皆大欢喜。信受奉行。

Explanation: Why, when expounding the Diamond Sutra for others, should one not grasp at marks and remain suchness-immovable? Because all conditioned, fabricated dharmas are like a dream, like an illusion, like a bubble, like a shadow, like dew, like a flash of lightning in the sky. Every bodhisattva, when facing all the conditioned dharmas of the world, should contemplate in this way and regard all conditioned dharmas thus. After the World-Honored One finished expounding this Diamond Sutra, the Elder Subhūti, the vessel of the teaching, together with all the bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās—the fourfold assembly of disciples—and all the devas and asuras of the entire world, having heard what the Buddha taught, rejoiced greatly, believed, accepted, and put it into practice.

As the Dharma assembly was about to conclude, the World-Honored One revealed the excellent four-line verse to explain the illusory, unreal nature of all conditioned dharmas. Since they are all illusory and unreal, bodhisattvas have no need to be attached to or grasp at any conditioned dharma, nor to turn and move along with conditioned dharmas. It is like being in a dream: no matter how we grasp at all the people, affairs, objects, and principles in the dream, no matter how we turn, waver, and create karmic actions along with them, in the end there is ultimately nothing at all—not even the slightest fraction can be grasped. No one has ever obtained anything from a dream; so what benefit is there in vainly toiling the mind!

All conditioned dharmas are conjured forth by the tathāgatagarbha in dependence on conditions, like a magician conjuring, by the power of thought, all manner of people, affairs, and things that suddenly appear in empty space; yet when the magician withdraws his thought, all people, affairs, and things ultimately return to emptiness and nothingness. Why labor to seize them, vainly enslaving the mind—what benefit is there! All conditioned dharmas are bubbles born from the great ocean of the tathāgatagarbha, arising and bursting in the ocean of the tathāgatagarbha. All the people, affairs, objects, and principles of the threefold world are like foam in the sea, born and ceasing, ceasing and born again; all their arisings and ceasings return to the great ocean. Why vainly toil to grasp at the foam and fail to see the ocean?

All conditioned dharmas are like the moon's reflection falling into thousands of rivers and seas—seemingly present yet seemingly absent; they appear to exist, yet cannot be scooped up. Only ordinary worldlings, like foolish monkeys, reach out their hands to scoop at it, finding nothing but emptiness; bodhisattvas and the wise, with the eye of wisdom, contemplate this reflection—what is there to seize? All conditioned dharmas are like morning dew: when the rising sun appears, they vanish in an instant, swiftly arising and swiftly ceasing—what is there to grasp? All conditioned dharmas are also like lightning and thunder in the rain, streaking across the sky in a moment and instantly leaving no trace; whether you are still shaken with fear or terrified out of your wits, it has already vanished without a trace.

The World-Honored One taught that after awakening, bodhisattvas should constantly contemplate in this way; then their own minds will be pure, without grasping or seizing, untainted by a single speck of dust, clinging to not a single dharma. Thus they will accord with the original mind, suchness (tathatā), and follow along with suchness, and will be able to attain supreme bodhi. With this mind free of grasping and seizing, they expound the Diamond Sutra for sentient beings, delivering all beings to escape the illusory dust together, to extinguish the illusory shadows together, to enter together the great ocean of wisdom of all the buddhas, and to perfect together the wisdom of all aspects (sarvākārajñatā) of the buddhas.

To receive, uphold, and recite the Diamond Sutra thus, and to expound the Dharma of the tathāgatagarbha—among the sentient beings of the world, who could compare with such merit and wisdom, who could surpass them! To benefit oneself and benefit others thus—how wonderful it is! How joyous it is! Finally, after the World-Honored One finished expounding this sūtra, the fourfold assembly of disciples and the great assembly of humans and devas—none did not believe, none did not accept, none did not uphold, none did not practice—this is called believing, accepting, and putting into practice the Diamond Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra expounded by the Tathāgata.